


If Ever The Two Should Meet

by RySenkari



Category: Big Hero 6: The Series (Cartoon)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fighting, Hiro Has Two Hands But He's Eventually Going To Have To Choose, Hurt/Comfort, Karmegiro, Kidnapping, Megarmiro, Megiro, Multi, Peril, Secret Identity, Very Slight Megarmi, karmiro
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-13
Updated: 2020-10-13
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:40:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26989927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RySenkari/pseuds/RySenkari
Summary: Immediately after the events of "Big Chibi 6", Karmi makes one last stop in San Fransokyo... the home of Megan Cruz, who wants to interview Karmi about some of her experiences for the school paper. The conversation soon drifts to Hiro, and Karmi learns his greatest secret, just as a supervillain comes calling. Can Hiro save Karmi and Megan, or will they be forced to save each other?
Relationships: Hiro Hamada/Karmi, Karmi/Megan, Megan Cruz/Hiro Hamada
Comments: 4
Kudos: 33





	1. The Interview

Megan Cruz sat on the couch, her laptop beside her.

_It's late... maybe she's not coming after all?_

Megan placed the laptop back on her leg and opened it to the page she'd been reading.

_She's probably super busy with all those fans... no time for an interview with someone who isn't even a real journalist._

Megan looked around the room. There were a number of boxes strewn about, filled with circuits and gadgets and various pieces of Kreitech equipment that was being kept for disposal. She had no clue why her dad had agreed to store some of it in their house, but as long as it didn't get in the way too much, she didn't mind having it around. Her dad would be getting rid of it in a day or two anyway.

_Just worried it'll make me look... unprofessional._

Megan sighed, looking at the page on her screen. It showed a picture of a girl a year older than Megan, the girl that she'd wanted to interview.

“Karmi...” Megan sighed to herself, reading over the page. “Where are you?”

There was a knock at the door. Megan sat her laptop down and walked over. She hoped it was Karmi, here for the interview... but there was a good chance it was her dad. He usually came home about this time, though he had told her he'd be running late, so maybe...

“Hi! You're Megan Cruz, right? The girl who wanted the interview?”

The girl standing in Megan's doorway was the same one from the picture. Karmi was here, a bit late and a bit disheveled, but she seemed to be in good spirits. Megan nodded and welcomed her into the living room.

“Sorry I'm late, I had to deal with an... incident downtown,” said Karmi. Earlier that evening, her autograph session had been crashed by a villain named Hardlight... though she did get to see her beloved Captain Cutie again, and even helped save the day! Of course, she wasn't quite so in love with Captain Cutie anymore, but she had a feeling this Megan girl didn't want to hear about any of that.

“Let me guess, Big Hero 6?” asked Megan. She hadn't seen anything about the attack on the news, but when something crazy went down in San Fransokyo, the resident superheroes were usually involved.

“You've met them too, huh?”

“You... could say that.”

Megan had more than met them... she knew who each of them was, including the one Karmi knew as 'Captain Cutie'... it was in fact her friend Hiro Hamada, and though the two hadn't seen each other quite so much since the battle they'd had with Trina and her robot army to save the city, Megan still considered Hiro to be a close friend... and deep down, hoped he'd someday be something more.

“By the way, I'm sorry about the mess, dad agreed to store some Kreitech stuff here, and-”

“Oooh, stuff like....?” Karmi's eyes lit up, and she walked over to one of the boxes and began digging through it... though she stopped herself after spending a few seconds going through the various things inside, knowing that time was wasting and that her parents expected her back at their hotel room in an hour. “Never mind, you want that interview, right?”

“Hey, it's cool, Hiro came and looked through this junk too, so-”

“Hiro....?” Karmi's eyes lit up again, and she blushed slightly. “You know... Hiro?”

“Yeah, we're friends,” said Megan, walking back over to the couch and sitting down with her laptop. “You guys knew each other too?”

“Well, I.... uh.....”

Karmi was blushing even harder, and she could feel the heat radiating through her face. She blinked, and tried to conceal her reddening cheeks from Megan, as this girl probably didn't want to hear anything about her crush on Hiro, which she hadn't even told him about! It was so embarrassing... even more than her crush on Captain Cutie. She started to speak, but it came out as only a stammer, and she decided that it might be best to just change the subject.

“I think we should start that interview, I've gotta be back at my hotel soon....!” Karmi had rushed over to the couch and sat down next to Megan, and Megan, who had caught a glimpse of Karmi's blush, smirked slightly at her. Megan could tell that something was up whenever she mentioned Hiro to Karmi, but she was starting to feel a slight blush herself, so instead of pressing the issue, she decided, like Karmi had, that starting the interview might spare them both some future awkwardness.

“Well, anyway, I think I told you before when I asked if I could interview you, that this might be a... sensitive subject for you. I've been doing research on Liv Amara and her activities in San Fransokyo, particularly her transformations of certain people in the city. Most of the people she transformed are either in jail or criminals who are at large, but you were also transformed, so I'd like to ask you some questions about what that was like for you. I know it might be a... difficult thing to talk about, so you're free to stop the interview at any time.”

“It's okay,” said Karmi with a smile. “I'm happy to talk about my experience with Liv's clone.”

“Clone? Oh, right... the Liv that terrorized the city wasn't the real one, I remember hearing about that... and you're sure you're okay with giving me an interview?”

Karmi nodded. She'd been through a lot at the hands of Liv Amara's clone. In fact, it was the reason her parents had chosen to take her out of SFIT in the first place... the trauma their daughter had endured, being transformed into a hideous monster and nearly killed... even though Karmi insisted she was okay and that she was safe, they'd taken her away without even giving her the chance to say goodbye. They'd barely been willing to let her come back to the city to do an autograph signing.

But Karmi barely had any lingering trauma at all. In fact, the experience had been far more educational than traumatizing for her, in the same way that her abduction by Momakase before that had been more exhilarating than frightening, even if it had nearly led to her death. Karmi was so inspired by Big Hero 6 and her personal hero Captain Cutie that she had found a bravery within herself that she never knew she had... and now she'd developed superpowered tech for herself, so that she could fight evil alongside the team.

“Well, if you're okay, then I guess we should get started,” said Megan, smiling. “First off, what happened with Liv Amara that led up to you being transformed?”

Karmi proceeded to give Megan a short summation of her time as Liv's intern... or at least the person she _thought_ was Liv. She talked about the strange occurrences in the city, and the role both she and Big Hero 6 played in investigating them.

“Yeah, I remember dad was completely stumped about all of it,” said Megan. “It's when he really started to try and take down Big Hero 6. He already hated superheroes before, but when all those crazy transformations started happening, he figured they had to be involved somehow.”

“How could anybody hate Big Hero 6? Well, besides supervillains, I mean...”

“Well... he blamed superheroes for his dad's death, since Boss Awesome wasn't able to keep his dad from being killed by a supervillain. And when Big Hero 6 showed up, all those bad memories came back. ...anyway, maybe I should let you finish your story. When exactly did you get transformed?”

“Right... well, when Hiro and I started looking into Liv's activities, Liv... or should I say her clone, Diane, planted a microchip on me... which I had no idea I had on until....”

Karmi then explained to Megan how Di lured Hiro into a trap, at which point she activated the microchip, triggering Karmi's transformation. Megan listened intently to Karmi, typing rapidly on her laptop, taking notes on everything Karmi said... what the transformation felt like, physically, mentally, what was happening to Hiro... she expected Karmi to get somewhat emotional, but the primary emotion coming from Karmi was excitement. No, Karmi hadn't enjoyed being transformed... the loss of her bodily autonomy and the overwhelming strain it placed on her mind as feral impulses clashed with her logical thinking were both extremely unpleasant, and Megan could see a hint of lingering discomfort from Karmi when she recalled the most harrowing moments of her ordeal. However, Karmi also remembered that it was the first time she realized that Hiro truly cared for her, and that she truly cared about him.

And as Karmi spoke about Hiro, Megan began to remember what she admired so much about him. His bravery, his intelligence, his coolness under pressure... his willingness to risk his life for his friends, San Fransokyo... for her. Hiro had been able to convince Megan not to give the team's secret identity to her father, because he'd risked everything to show her that his intentions were good and that his team was capable of stopping the city's supervillains. And just like Hiro had saved Karmi, he'd also saved Megan when she'd been taken hostage by the evil robotic Trina. Megan, like Karmi, had seen Hiro at his best, and she couldn't help but feel a warmth inside her chest whenever she thought about his superhero alter ego.

“And that's it,” said Karmi, finishing her story. “I didn't spend enough time as the creature to get a lot of physical information, and my mind was being pushed and pulled the whole time too, so it was really hard to think about... everything, you know? On top of that, I was _super_ worried about Hiro....”

“I bet you were,” Megan replied, looking up from her laptop at Karmi. She would've been worried too... in fact, the whole time Karmi was talking, Megan was almost imagining what it would've been like if she were in that scenario. She'd like to think she'd have been able to fight back against the transformation and protect Hiro too, but she wasn't sure, and she found herself shuddering a bit to think about it. “He never told me about any of that stuff... have you guys talked about the incident since then?”

“No,” said Karmi, shaking her head. “I didn't get the chance, my parents pulled me out of SFIT and I had to leave San Fransokyo almost immediately after.”

_If he never talked about it with me, maybe he's the one who's traumatized..._ thought Megan, a somewhat worried look crossing her face.

“Hey, are you okay?” asked Karmi, reaching over to Megan's hand.

“What? Me? I'm fine, you're the one who just described being part of the craziest thing ever,” replied Megan, laughing nervously. “Thanks, by the way... you gave me a lot of great information.”

Megan closed her laptop and set it aside. She looked back over at Karmi, who had stood up from the couch, and she stood up as well.

“Is there anything else you need? I can answer some questions about _Big Chibi 6_ too if you want!” 

Megan shook her head. She wasn't a fan of  _Big Chibi 6_ , and knowing who the team really was, she was surprised that any of them were fans. Then again, it was probably just a matter of personal taste... cute chibi superheroes weren't really her thing, even if she knew the team of heroes they were based on.

“I guess I've got one question,” said Megan with a snicker. “How'd you ever come up with the name Captain Cutie?”

“Well... isn't it obvious?” asked Karmi, starting to blush again.

“Not really, I mean... he's got that helmet thing on,” Megan replied. She was mostly teasing Karmi at this point, but she also wanted to get to know this girl a little better. Something about how brave she seemed to be in the face of extreme danger was quite fascinating to Megan. She liked to think that she was quite brave, and as a wannabe journalist, she was prepared to put herself in danger to get a story... but her dad was a cop, danger ran in her blood. Karmi was a scientist, and it seemed like someone like her would run from danger... but she was every bit as brave as Hiro, and Megan found that incredibly fascinating, especially since this brave girl seemed to have formed a massive crush on Hiro's superhero alter ego without even knowing it was really him. “How do you know he's cute?”

“I just... I just do, okay?” Karmi replied, sounding more flustered than angry, though it was clear that this was a line of conversation that was turning a bit too personal for her. “The thing is, I don't so much anymore... I mean, he's still cute, but there's someone else I like, and...!”

Now Karmi  _knew_ she'd said too much, and she started to walk toward the door. Megan, realizing she might've been teasing a bit  _too_ much, let out a sigh and stepped in front of Karmi, an apologetic look on her face.

“Sorry, I'm sorry, that was... unprofessional of me,” she said. “If you think Hiro's cute, there's nothing wrong with-”

Megan stopped herself and gasped, putting her hands up to her mouth.

“What...?” Karmi replied, blinking. “I never said Hiro was cute, I said Captain Cutie was cute!”

Megan, realizing that she'd just done  _far_ more than embarrass Karmi, began to shake as her mind raced for a way to bail herself out of this conversation and avoid doing the one thing she'd promised she'd never do.

_How could I be so stupid?_ Megan thought, mentally berating herself.  _Just blabbing out Hiro's secret identity! Wait, maybe she doesn't know what I meant!_

“Wait a minute...” said Karmi, beginning to connect the dots.

“I meant... Hiro's the guy you like now, right? Instead of Captain Cutie?” Megan quickly stammered, trying her best to protect her friend's secret.

“You just said I thought Hiro was cute, but I only told you Captain Cutie was cute...”

“I just assumed, okay?!”

It was too late. Karmi was brilliant, and though she wasn't quite as good at picking up social cues as she was at science, she had an excellent memory, and every moment she'd spent with Captain Cutie was embedded in her mind. She cross-referenced those moments with her memories of Hiro, and came to a sudden realization, the flame that Megan's slip of the tongue had sparked in her brain.

“Hiro is Captain Cutie! Captain Cutie is Hiro! …oh, my gosh!”

Karmi put both hands to her head, her eyes wide open. Megan put her head in her hands, and wished that she could crawl through the floor.

“Oh crap, I promised Hiro I wouldn't tell _anyone_!”

More connections were forming in Karmi's mind. The other members of Big Hero 6, and Hiro's best friends... it took her only a few more seconds to realize.

_Gogo, Wasabi, Honey Lemon, Fred, Baymax... they're all Big Hero 6! They were this whole time, and I had no idea!_

Karmi began to breathe heavily, her mouth agape as so many memories flooded her mind, all at the same time. Megan continued to groan and fret, but soon got her wits about her and tried to remind Karmi that she was supposed to have kept this a secret.

“Karmi, you can't let Hiro know that I told you, he'll kill me! I mean, not literally, he's still scared of my dad, but... our friendship would be over!”

“Ugh, I can't believe I didn't figure it out sooner!” Karmi groaned, mentally berating herself.

Megan finally accepted that it was too late to put the toothpaste back in the tube, and managed to collect herself quicker than Karmi, who was still fretting and had started pacing around the living room. She walked over to Karmi and took her by the wrist, leading her back over to the couch to sit down. When she did, she continued to breathe heavily for a few more seconds, then turned to Megan and finally managed to collect herself enough to speak.

“When did he tell you?” asked Karmi.

“He didn't,” Megan replied. “I... kinda figured it out on my own. I was gonna turn him in to my dad, but then I saw how brave he was... and how much the city needed Big Hero 6.”

“Yeah...” said Karmi quietly, nodding her head. “...yeah....”

“Are you okay?” asked Megan, placing a hand on Karmi's shoulder. “I mean, there's a reason he didn't tell you.”

“He wanted to keep me safe,” Karmi replied.”...oooh... I feel so stupid...”

“Hey, look, I might not be a science nerd or anything, but I'm a pretty good investigator, so-”

“It's not that,” replied Karmi, whose face was now lined with an almost regretful sadness. “It's... well, I might've found out who he was a long time ago if we hadn't gotten off to such a rough start.”

Megan could see the regret on Karmi's face, and began to feel more guilt about the emotional distress she'd caused her than she did about accidentally revealing Hiro's secret.

“When I first met Hiro, I was _really_ jealous of him. At the time, I was the youngest student at SFIT, and so for him to come in like that, it felt like he was... I dunno, stealing my thunder? I gave him a really hard time. I always belittled what he did, I picked on him constantly, I took advantage of the fact that Professor Granville was making us hang out together to get on his nerves...”

Karmi sighed again, her face heavy with guilt. Megan tried her best to lighten the mood, and thought back to when she and Hiro first met.

“Hey, I gave him kind of a hard time too,” said Megan. “I mean, not like _that_ , but we didn't always get along super well.”

“I mean, he was kind of a jerk at first too, but... I dunno, I think it was mostly me,” said Karmi. “And to think, I was head over heels in love with him the whole time! I should've known Hiro and Captain Cutie were one and the same, but... ugh, I was hating Hiro too much to realize that he was a superhero the whole time!”

“Also, I'm pretty sure he doesn't like to be called Captain Cutie,” said Megan.

“I'm starting to realize that too,” groaned Karmi, putting her head in her hands. “He must've thought I was a total creep! And now it's too late to change it, all those videos I made...”

Karmi looked back up at Megan, her guilt now fading back to regret.

“And by the time I realized how I truly felt about Hiro... it was too late. My family had already made plans to move us away.”

Megan could tell that Karmi had never opened up to anyone about her feelings like this before. Certainly not Hiro, and certainly not anyone else. She didn't know what to say... she'd never been put in a position to comfort someone who was being so candid, and at the same time, she was also feeling some of the same emotions toward Hiro that Karmi was, which made her start to feel guilty as well. She'd already opened up about her feelings a little bit, but she got the sense that Karmi didn't know just how much she really cared about him... and was worried that finding out might upset her.

But at the same time, Karmi had bared her soul... and Megan almost felt like she needed to do the same, if only to make sure the two were on the same page.

“It took a little while for me to realize how I felt about him too... thing is, I'm still not sure if it's a crush, or something else... or nothing at all,” said Megan. “But everything you've said about Hiro reminds me of the time we spent together investigating those robots... and I totally get why you feel that way about him.”

“Oh, right, you... like him too, don't you?” Karmi replied. “Ugh...”

“What?”

Megan started to worry that Karmi really was starting to get jealous, but instead of anger, Megan continued to see guilt.

“Here I am, gushing over Hiro, and you probably like him just as much as I do!”

“I wouldn't say you were gushing, but-”

“You've been here for him this whole time, so... if he's into you or something, it's okay.”

Megan snickered, and Karmi raised an eyebrow.

“Don't worry, Hiro's not into me. We're just friends... even if maybe... even if maybe sometimes I think it might be nice if we were... more.”

“Have you ever asked him?”

“What? Me? Ask him out? No.... no!” Megan laughed again, shaking her head and trying not to make Karmi feel any more guilty than she already was.

“It's okay! I really... really... _really_ like Hiro, but if you want to ask him out-”

“Hey,” said Megan sharply, looking into Karmi's eyes with a sudden sincerity. “I don't do the whole 'jealousy' thing, okay? I'm not the kind of girl who fights with other girls over boys, especially girls as cool as you. If you like Hiro, you should tell him. You saved his life, and you're clearly into him, so if he likes you more than he likes me, it's fine.”

“...you think I'm cool?” said Karmi, suddenly blushing slightly and placing her hand up to her face.

“Yeah, I mean... you've been through all that stuff with Big Hero 6 and you still want to hang out with them and date Hiro? I can see what Hiro likes about you, so if you two start dating, I'm cool with it, not that you guys even need my approval.”

Karmi blushed even harder... she'd expected some kind of fight to break out after she and Megan had started talking about Hiro, but instead, this girl was totally cool with the idea of her and Hiro dating... and seemed to actually like her a bit as a friend too. She wasn't used to having someone want to be her friend straight away, but the more she learned about Megan, the more she could understand what Hiro saw in her too. She was tough, and witty, and seemed to be a really caring person... and she'd helped Hiro out a lot when Karmi couldn't, which Karmi couldn't help but appreciate.

“Hey, if you and Hiro were a thing, that'd be cool too. I mean... I'd be a bit sad, but we could still be friends, and I know you'd look out for him,” said Karmi, rubbing the back of her neck as she spoke. “And it actually feels pretty good to talk to you about all this. I haven't really had someone to talk to about it since I moved away, you know?”

Karmi smiled warmly at Megan, and Megan smiled back. The two had clearly bonded over Hiro, and found themselves wanting to talk about more than just the shared superhero in their lives... but Karmi could tell that it was getting late, and that she was due back at her hotel soon. She didn't want her parents to worry.

“Hey, maybe we could talk some more later?” said Karmi, getting back up from the couch.

“Yeah, sure,” Megan replied, standing up as well. “We should trade phone numbers, or something.”

“Or Zoom screen names!” said Karmi, taking out her phone.

As the two girls began to exchange information, there was a knock at the door.

“Oh, I bet that's my dad,” said Megan, walking to the door. “Maybe I can ask him to give you a ride back to the hotel?”

Megan opened the door, and gasped when she saw who was standing on her porch. Instead of her father, it was a tall girl with black and red hair styled in a sideshave, and a face that Megan would never forget.

“Trina...?” Megan gasped, taking a step back.

“I remember you,” Trina replied, stepping inside the house. “You're friends with Hiro... and quite the little squirmer, if I recall correctly.”

Karmi and Megan both had their attention focused on the unwelcome intruder, who continued to walk into the house and began to look around.

“I thought Big Hero 6 scrapped you!” said Megan, nervously reaching for her pocket. “And that you used to be a lot bigger...”

“I _was_ scrapped, until I managed to rebuild myself from the ground up... I decided to go for the humanoid body, at least for now, until I can properly restart the robot revolution. And I see this is where Kreitech's been storing some of the old Buddy Guardian parts... that's good, I won't need to keep looking.”

Even though Karmi hadn't been in San Fransokyo for Trina's 'robot revolution', she knew that this strange girl was bad news. However, she didn't have her power fist on her... she'd given it to Hiro to charge while she was at Megan's for the interview! Despite her lack of tech, she did have another ace up her sleeve... literally.

“Megan, get back!” Karmi suddenly shouted, reaching up to her wrist.

“Huh?” Megan replied, before moving out of the way. “Karmi, what are you doing?”

After Megan stepped aside, two vines shot out of Karmi's hand, emanating from a microchip embedded in her skin. Megan raised an impressed eyebrow, while Trina found herself entangled, her arms pinned to her sides.

“After I left SFIT, I got back in contact with Liv Amara,” said Karmi, her voice straining slightly as she held the vines wrapped around Trina. “The real one, not the clone. We talked... she felt really bad about what her clone did, but I still wanted to work with her. So once I knew I could trust her, we did some biotech together, and-”

Karmi was suddenly cut off by Trina grabbing the vines and pulling her forward. Karmi let out a scream, and Trina flexed, snapping the vines and causing Karmi to hurtle toward her. Trina grabbed the end of the vine still attached to Karmi's hand, and with a light flick, send the girl flying into the back wall.

“Karmi!” Megan shouted, watching as the girl hit the wall hard, leaving a dent in the wall and leaving Karmi dazed.

“I always was jealous of that dork,” spat Trina with a sadistic smirk. “She treated Hiro like garbage, and he _still_ liked her? Well, can't say I'm surprised at his lousy taste in girls.”

“Okay, time for a good old fashioned tazing,” said Megan, pulling a large stun gun out of her pocket and jabbing it into Trina. “I'm pretty sure robots don't like electricity!”

“I'm pretty sure I can reverse your polarity,” said Trina as the stun gun crackled against her. Her eyes began to glow, and Megan soon found herself on the receiving end of her own tazing, letting out a loud cry of pain and surprise as 250,000 volts went through her body. “And another of Hiro's dumb girlfriends bites the dust!”

Megan fell onto her back, temporarily unable to move her limbs as electricity continued to jolt through her. She and the dazed Karmi could only watch helplessly as Trina began to rifle through the boxes of Kreitech items laying around the room.

“Let's see here... circuit boards, wiring, chips... some decent stuff, but nothing that measures up to what dad came up with,” said Trina.

“K....Karmi?” Megan gasped weakly, looking across the room to see her new friend still sprawled out on the floor. _No... she's hurt! And I can't do a thing about it!_

“Ugh, it's all junk!” shouted Trina, angrily kicking over a stack of boxes, then looking down at the two incapacitated girls. “Hmm... I might not be able to build any decent bots with this trash, but I think I might be able to score a pretty sweet consolation prize anyway...”

She walked over to Megan, taking a brief look at Karmi before looking back down at the chief's daughter.

“I bet Hiro would come for either one of you... and I've got no doubt he'd come for you _both_.”

When Megan realized what Trina's new plans were, she struggled to get to her feet, but could only weakly twitch her arms and legs, while Karmi's groans indicated that she was in no shape to fight back either. Megan looked up at Trina with a glare of defiance... and fear. The robot girl reached for her, and soon, everything went black.


	2. Breaking Point

In the apartment above the Lucky Cat Cafe, Hiro was busy studying Karmi's tech glove, curious to see what his friend had learned about coding since their time at SFIT together.

“The technology's pretty impressive,” said Hiro, studying the code on his computer. “I mean, she's not as good at coding as me or Tadashi, but she's a really quick learner.”

“Your flushed face indicates a fondness for Karmi,” said Baymax, scanning Hiro's vital signs. “You seem to be showing signs of what is commonly referred to as-”

“A crush, I know, I know,” Hiro said with a groan. “I've already got the others bugging me about it, I don't need you pointing it out too!”

Hiro sighed, and continued to study the screen, but couldn't get Karmi's actions during their fight against Hardlight out of his mind. She'd fought bravely and capably, and though the team probably could've beaten his projections without help, her intervention had been key to Hardlight's capture. She'd stepped up to fight him at great risk to herself, much like any member of Big Hero 6 would have. Despite everything she'd been through, she was braver than ever... and she'd gotten a lot nicer too.

“I can't believe we used to give each other such a hard time,” said Hiro. “I mean, she was a jerk, but I was too. I just wish I could've figured things out with her before she left.”

“I am detecting... guilt,” said Baymax. “These feelings can best be remedied by talking to the person you believe you have hurt.”

“Yeah, well... I'll see her again to give her back her power fist before she leaves. Maybe we can talk then... maybe I can even tell her I'm Captain Cutie. ...and get her to start calling my alter ego something else.”

Hiro had thought about revealing his secret to Karmi back at the comic book store, after everyone had left... but he figured enough people already knew who Big Hero 6 was that revealing it to someone else, even someone he trusted with his life, would make things too complicated... and possibly too awkward, considering the feelings he and Karmi had for each other.

“I like her, Baymax. Telling her I'm a superhero could change everything.”

“...what about Megan?”

“Oh, come on, not again!” Hiro shouted in exasperation. His feelings toward Megan were just as complicated, if not more so. She was cool like Karmi, but in different ways. She was a lot more different from him than Karmi was, but Hiro found a lot of those opposites very attractive. She was brave, and smart, though in different ways than Karmi, and she was also a lot more forward about how she felt. He already knew from her dad that she had feelings for him, but were they as strong as the feelings Karmi had? And did Hiro feel as strongly about her? “Look, Baymax, can we just talk about one girl at a time? Or preferably no girls at all?”

“You have a call coming in from Karmi,” said Baymax, causing Hiro to groan... but then to perk up.

“She probably needs her power fist back,” replied Hiro. “Put her on.”

The screen on Baymax's chest then switched over to showing an abandoned warehouse... before Trina popped up.

“Trina!” shouted Hiro, shocked to see his robotic enemy again, especially so soon after she'd been scrapped. “How'd you get put back together... and where's Karmi?”

“Karmi's right here,” said Trina, briefly moving the camera to show Karmi and Megan tied back to back to chairs, both of them unconscious. “And I picked up another of our friends while I was out.”

“Megan?!” Hiro gasped. “Let them go!”

“Oh, it's not them I want... it's you. And only you. That means no Big Hero 6, no Baymax, just Hiro. I've placed some traps in all the entrances, so if I detect any of your friends, this whole place goes up in one big explosion! And as you can see, I don't mind getting blasted to bits, but I don't think your little girlfriends can be rebuilt, so you'd better do exactly as I say.”

“Trina, I don't know what you want with me, but leave them out of this. I'll do as you say, but let them go.”

“Yeah... not until you get here. Then, well, we'll see! See you then, Hiro...”

The screen flashed off, and Hiro looked at Baymax.

“It is a very obvious trap,” said Baymax. “It is highly recommended that you notify the others immediately.”

“Yeah, but you heard what Trina said... if any of you guys show up, the place blows up! I can't risk it... I'm going down there alone, and I'm going to save Karmi and Megan.”

“You are not properly equipped to fight someone as strong as Trina alone,” said Baymax. “Your chance of rescuing the girls is extremely-”

“I'm going, and that's final. ...but if I don't come back in an hour, go ahead and call the others... if I can't beat Trina, I can at least stall her until help shows up.”

Hiro sighed and began to suit up, but before he left, he turned to Baymax and smiled.

“I know you're worried, buddy... but you know I've done crazier things than this before. It's just Trina, what's the worst that could happen?”

Baymax's chest lit up with pictorials of all sorts of horrible injuries and scenarios, and the robot began to recite them matter-of-factly, prompting Hiro to let out a sigh.

“I'll be back soon, with Karmi and Megan, safe and sound.”

O-O-O

When Megan woke up, her body was still tingling slightly from the effects of having her own taser turned on her, and her jaw ached from when she'd been knocked out by Trina, but she was soon very much aware of the situation she and Karmi were both in. She was seated in a metal chair, and secured to it quite tightly by ropes wrapped around her chest and wrists, binding them tightly behind her back to the back of the chair. Her legs were secured with ropes around her thighs and ankles, and her ankles too were secured to the bar between the chair's legs, while the chair itself was bolted to the floor. Behind her, Karmi was tied to a chair in similar fashion, and when she moved her fingers, she could actually feel Karmi's hands and could even reach the ropes securing her wrists... though the knot binding them was too tight for her to manipulate, especially since she couldn't even see her hands.

_This is bad..._ thought Megan. She took a moment to look around the warehouse, and could see boxes piled everywhere, much like the ones stored at her house. The warehouse was quite large, with windows near the ceiling that let the light of the moon pour in, though she and Karmi were also illuminated by the large lights overhead. As she started to struggle in her bindings, she could hear her companion groaned, and looked back to check on her predicament. “Karmi! Are you okay?”

“Unnh... yeah, I'm fine...” groaned Karmi, who quickly discovered her own situation and began to struggle as well. “This isn't the first time I've been tied to a chair.”

“Huh?”

“Yeah, I got kidnapped by Momakase once, and ended up in a situation a lot like this... most of Big Hero 6 got caught with me too. It was actually pretty exciting!”

Megan blinked a few times, somewhat in shock from what Karmi had said. Being kidnapped was...  _exciting_ ? Karmi could see the perplexed look on Megan's face, and quickly clarified herself, knowing that she'd probably just weirded her new friend out.

“I mean, sure it was scary... bound, gagged, menaced by a katana-wielding assassin lady... but Captain Cutie, I mean, Hiro, showed up to rescue me, and I even got to save him too! It was like living in my very own _Big Hero 6_ fanfic, you know?”

“Well yeah, it must've been fun getting to work with Big Hero 6, but I couldn't imagine getting kidnapped by some crazy person and then just being... _okay_ after. I mean, look at us now! I'm... I'm actually pretty scared.”

Megan's voice was trembling slightly as she continued to struggle, and Karmi's tone turned a lot more empathetic... she felt she needed to explain herself further, and hoped she wasn't making Megan upset with her casual reaction to all of this.

“I... was really scared at first. I was terrified, actually. Being all alone in the dark, not knowing if I'd make it out alive... that was a nightmare. But as I watched Big Hero 6 fighting for me, I felt something else besides fear... it was this overwhelming need to help them! I stopped being afraid, and I started to get really... really mad, and determined, and then I felt like I needed to _do_ something! And that's when this like, HUGE emotional rush came over me... I wasn't scared at all anymore, I was excited, and exhilarated, and... and....!”

Karmi stopped herself and looked back at Megan, her expression softening again.

“But I know not everybody feels that way. It's okay if you're scared... I am too.”

“No... no, I get it,” replied Megan, managing a smile. “When I was helping Hiro investigate the Buddy Guards, I felt really excited too, like a real superhero, you know? And even when Trina grabbed me, that was pretty scary, but I was really pissed off! I didn't want to be some hostage, I wanted to help Hiro and the others out! ...I can't say I was as excited about helping them as you are, but... I understand how you feel.”

The two both continued to struggle, trying to break or slide out of the ropes tied around them, but the ropes were tight, and didn't have any slack, and neither girl was nearly strong enough to get free. Karmi tried to form her vines, but with her arms tied behind her back, she couldn't move them in the proper way to get them to come out, so her biotech powers were useless. Megan pushed hard against the chair, trying to move it, but with it being secured to the floor, that wasn't going to happen, and as for untying each other's wrists, neither girl was able to get the knot loose, despite their best efforts and their nimble fingers.

“It's no use, we're stuck...!” shouted Megan, her voice strained with exertion. “Karmi, are you having any luck?”

“No,” Karmi replied with an exasperated sigh. “I'm stuck too... that robot girl's even better at tying ropes than Momakase is.”

“Karmi, I'm sorry I got you involved in this. If it hadn't been for that dumb interview, you wouldn't have been at my house when Trina showed up.”

“But you still would have, and you'd be all alone now, just like I was. I'm glad I'm here... we need to stick together, okay?”

Megan looked back at Karmi, who was smiling at her with a look of compassion and caring. Whatever happened, whatever Trina did to them, they were in this together, and they were going to get each other out of this if Big Hero 6 couldn't. They both had faith in Hiro, but they had also formed faith in each other, and they weren't going to let anything get between them. Not this situation, and especially not Hiro.

“Karmi, if something happens to me-”

“Don't say that... I know Hiro's going to come save us. We'll be okay.”

“I know, it's just-”

“And if something happens to me, you need to look out for Hiro,” said Karmi, still smiling at her new friend.

“...it's like you said, we'll be okay.”

The two girls hadn't given up on struggling, but they hadn't made any progress by the time Trina came back into the room. She was fuming over something she'd seen on the television, and was still ranting to herself as she walked over to her two hostages.

“I can't believe Noodle Burger Boy is already working with those glorified mascots!” shouted Trina. “How could he just make brand new sisters after everything we've been through together? Next time I see him, I'm going to reprogram him to work with me and only me.”

“Oooh, it sounds like somebody's jealous,” snarked Megan, looking over at Trina. Trina snarled and whipped her head around, glaring harshly at the teenage girl. “Worried that you're going to be replaced by a metal mushroom?”

“Look who's talking,” said Trina. “You both know that Hiro can only choose one of you, right? Oooh... that might be fun, dangle you both over some acid and make him choose which one of you to save... I can only imagine what you'll be shouting! 'Hiro, save me, don't save her! Hiro, she's terrible for you, save meeeee!'”

“You wish,” said Karmi. “Megan's my friend, and if Hiro likes her, that's fine with me.”

“Same here,” Megan replied. “Besides, we don't define ourselves by how we feel about Hiro. Sounds to me like you're the one with Hiro on the brain, going to all this trouble to lure him here.”

“I think you're jealous of both of us,” said Megan.

“That's not true!” shouted Trina.

“I think you're upset that you asked Hiro to join you and Obake, and he turned you down flat as a pancake!” snarked Karmi.

“Why you...!” Trina replied, seething with rage as she stormed over to the two girls.

“Speaking of flat as a pancake, I wonder if you're bitter that Obake never gave you a figure like Karmi's? I'm sure Hiro's gotta be noticing that by now,” said Megan, really hoping to push her captor's buttons.

“Megan!” Karmi shouted, her face bright red as she looked back at her new friend. “Don't taunt the evil robot girl about my chest size!”

“That does it, I've heard enough out of both of you,” said Trina, walking over to a nearby table and picking up a roll of duct tape.

“Sounds like Obake never programmed a sense of humor either,” said Megan, watching as Trina came back over. “I can tell you this, when Hiro does show up, he's going to wipe the floor with you.”

“That's right, you've got no chance against him,” Karmi said, as Trina stood in front of her. “He beat you once, and he's going to beat you again, whether Big Hero 6 is with him or not.”

“Don't bet on it,” replied Trina, tearing a strip of tape from the roll. “Big Hero 6 isn't going to show, just Hiro, or this whole place goes up in smoke... and when he does come, I'm going to make you watch me beat him to death.”

“You'll never-” was all that Karmi was able to get out before her lips were sealed with the tape, reducing her protests and taunts to mere muffled shouting. _You'll never be able to beat him! He's the bravest person I've ever known!_

“I won't let you hurt Hiro _or_ Karmi,” said Megan, though as Trina tore off a strip of tape for her own mouth, the cocky facade she had put up for her captor began to fade back into fear, and her voice was trembling slightly. “Even if I'm tied to this chair, I'll kick your ass if you hurt them!”

“Oooh, I'm so scared. Listen to yourself, you're tied to a chair and you're just a scared little girl. I'm Trina, queen of the robot revolution, and you're just one of the first of my many future victims. Don't worry... I think I'll finish you off last, so you can see me break Hiro _and_ your new little friend before I take care of you.”

“You robotic freak-” Megan shouted before being cut off by Trina pressing the strip of tape tightly over her mouth as well. She too continued to protest and cry out, but there was nothing she could do or say to stop the plans that Trina was about to set into motion. _Let me and Karmi go right NOW!_

The two girls could only watch and struggle in enforced silence as Trina walked over to another table and began picking up various weapons and attachments that had been laid out on it. She held up a large cannon that shot out several powerful bursts of electricity, then tested a programmable robot fist that enhanced her strength tenfold. As the two struggled, they stole looks at each other as well... and though they were trying to be brave, they could see the fear forming in each other's eyes.

_I won't forgive myself if Hiro gets hurt... I should've fought back harder, I can't believe this is happening again!_ Karmi's mind was racing, and her struggles were starting to intensify.  _I don't mind if I get hurt, but I can't let it happen to Hiro, especially before I can tell him everything... that I know he's a superhero, how much I care about him... and how sorry I am for everything I said to him before I realized how stupid I was being._

But Karmi's struggles were nothing compared to Megan's, who was pulling and pushing herself against the chair and her bonds with all of her might, her shoulders jerking furiously, her head whipping back and forth as she tried to slide the ropes off or work the tape off on her shoulder. Nothing she did was working to loosen her bonds even a bit, but that didn't stop her from trying, and the more she failed, the harder she worked to try and get loose, grunting in anger, fear, and even pain as her limbs began to ache from all the strain her struggles were causing.

_This can't be happening! I can't just sit here and watch that freak hurt Hiro! This is my fault, I should've known someone might show up and try to steal that junk, I should have been ready! Now Hiro's walking right into a trap, and there's nothing I can do! And Karmi's in trouble too... she doesn't deserve any of this, she was only at my house because I asked her to be! She's the one who deserves to be with Hiro, she's the one with actual superhero cred, I'm just some normal girl whose dad happens to be the chief of police. I can't get free and I can't help anyone!_

The girls' muffled shouting echoed through the room as Trina outfitted herself for combat, choosing the strength-boosting arms, the sonic hand cannons, and the jet boots as her weapons of choice. She wouldn't need much else, especially since she expected Hiro to come alone. And sure enough, she could soon see on her cameras that Hiro had arrived, right on schedule. The perimeter sensors confirmed that there was no sign of any other members of Big Hero 6. Trina was ready... she'd been ready for this for a long time.

“Looks like the party's about to get started,” said Trina, walking toward the door.

_No!_ cried Megan through her gag. She was facing the door, and she lunged forward in her bonds as much as she could, trying one last time to break free. She bowed her head and choked out a quiet sob, realizing that she was about to watch her friend walk right into Trina's diabolical trap.  _It's all my fault..._

Megan then felt a soft hand clenching one of her own, fingers interlacing with hers. The hand gripped hers tightly, and she felt a reassuring wave of calm cut through her fear. She looked back and could see Karmi, her lips curved into a smile under the tape. Karmi was frightened too... Megan could feel Karmi's hand trembling, and her pulse racing... but could also feel her continuing to squeeze her hand tightly, as a way of saying that everything was going to be okay, even if she couldn't actually say it with her lips.

_Karmi... thank you._

_Megan, we'll get out of this and we'll save Hiro, or he'll save us. I don't know how I know that, but I do._

The two girls both watched as the door to the warehouse opened and Hiro appeared, clad in his superhero helmet and armor. His eyes behind the visor were narrowed with focus and determination, and he stared across the warehouse at Trina before looking past her to see Karmi and Megan struggling in their bonds.

“Megan! Karmi! Are you okay?”

The two girls muffled to him under their gags that they were fine... Megan would've told him to run, but she and Karmi both knew that he'd never do that, not when their lives were at stake, and Karmi didn't even think to ask that of him.

“You should worry more about yourself!” said Trina, before flying toward him. Hiro quickly leapt up, evading Trina's attack, only for her to turn and fire a sonic energy blast at him, sending him plummeting quickly to the ground with a cry of pain. “You're in even more dire straits than they are, you just don't know it yet.”

As Trina fired off another sonic blast, Hiro rolled out of the way. He raised his arm, deploying several micro missiles from his right wrist that took aim at Trina and fired. Trina smirked, crossing her arms in front of her chest and letting the missiles strike her... causing not even a shred of damage.

“As you can see, I've made a few upgrades to my body armor,” said Trina, walking toward Hiro. “I've got all the power and durability of my larger form, but in a compact, humanoid body to maximize speed and agility. It's the best of both worlds... and it means you've got no chance against me!”

Trina lunged at Hiro, striking at him with a powerful punch. He raised both his hands to block it, only for her fist to come down anyway, striking his hands and cracking the armor on one of them before slamming into the side of his face. Hiro cried out, his visor taking the brunt of the blow but still causing his head to slam into the ground with face-bruising force. Karmi and Megan both gasped and winced at the sight, and continued their struggles unabated, not wanting to see Hiro take any more of a beating.

_He's getting his butt kicked already!_ thought Megan, eyes wide with fear.  _Come on, Hiro, fight back!_

_I know you can do it, Hiro... that weird robot lady is no match for you! I've seen you take down worse!_ Karmi thought, though she too was starting to get nervous as she watched Hiro and Trina's fight continue.

“You've got me, so let them go!” said Hiro, continuing to defend himself by flying backward as Trina rained down blow after blow on his suit.

“But these things are always more fun with a captive audience, wouldn't you say?”

As Trina flew by a table, she picked up the electric cannon and blasted Hiro in the chest. Hiro cried out, flying backward and slamming into a large stack of boxes, which broke apart and fell on him, showering him with the heavy shrapnel inside. As Trina stalked over, licking her lips and anticipating an easy kill, a large wrench flew out from the stack of boxes, slamming into her chest and forcing her to one knee.

“Nnnngh!” grunted Trina, looking up. “What the...?”

Despite the added bruises he'd sustained, Hiro barely looked worse for wear, flying out of the rubble pile and firing a powerful sonic burst at Trina, even more powerful than the one she'd aimed at him before. Trina once again crossed her arms in front of her chest to shield herself, but was soon sent skidding back across the floor, and then was picked up into the air, hurtling back with incredible force and a loud scream.

Hiro didn't waste any time. Before Trina had even hit the ground, he rushed over to Megan.

“Megan, Karmi, don't worry... I'm gonna get both of you out of this,” he said, raising his hand to pull the tape from Megan's mouth. He was affecting his 'Captain Cutie' voice, as he didn't yet know that Karmi knew who he was, and hearing Hiro put on that fake voice again made Megan smirk slightly, even as she continued to acknowledge the precariousness of their situation.

_Hiro, hurry, before she gets up!_ Megan muffled at him. She couldn't help but blush as she looked into his eyes through his visor, and felt the touch of his gloved hand on her face. Karmi looked back at both of them, relieved that Hiro didn't see to be in immediate danger, but like Megan, couldn't help but worry. As Hiro went to pull off the tape, Megan caught a flash of movement out of the corner of her eye... and suddenly screamed.  _LOOK OUT!_

Hiro barely had time to lower his hand before a powerful sonic blast slammed into him, sending him skidding across the floor. Megan and Karmi were both rocked by the blast as well, with Megan taking the brunt of it and letting out a loud grunt as the residual waves struck her body, making her feel for a moment as if the wind had been knocked out of her. She gasped through her nose, trying to catch her breath, and immediately felt Karmi's hand clench around hers again.

_Megan!_ Karmi muffled, then looked to see Hiro laid out on his back, and cried out again.  _HIRO!_

The two girls watched as Trina flew toward the downed Hiro, barely fazed by the hit she'd taken. She threw a punch as he stood up, knocking him back, and began to trade more blows with him as the two flew around the room. Hiro was clearly getting the worst of it, taking punches all over his suit, while only managing to land a few of his own that barely glanced off of Trina.

_No, Hiro!_ thought Megan, regaining her breath just in time to watch as her friend was pummeled relentlessly by Trina. She felt sweat on both her palm and Karmi's as they continued to hold each other's hands tightly, helpless to do anything but watch as Hiro started to lose the upper hand in his fight.  _He can't take much more of this!_

The two girls kept struggling, but they were starting to wear out, and it was clear that none of their bonds had any flex or give whatsoever. They were trapped, and fear was starting to overtake both of them, as their squirms and screams grew more and more desperate.

“Trina, enough...!” shouted Hiro, deploying an array of magnets around Trina. As she continued to come at him, he activated the magnets, forming a powerful electromagnetic field that stunned Trina for a moment, giving him the opening he need to surge forward with a ferocious punch. This time, Trina was taken aback, stumbling from the force of the blow. “You're going back to jail!”

The magnets followed Trina as she stumbled back, lighting her up with more electrical bursts. It disrupted her systems and caused her to jerk around slightly, but even as Hiro started to push back, Karmi and Megan didn't want to take any chances.

_He's winning, but we still have to help him!_ Karmi jerked herself upward in the chair, trying again to loosen the bonds trapping her arms and legs. Meanwhile, Megan had reluctantly pulled her hand away from Karmi's, clenching it into a fist and trying to jerk her wrists out of the ropes.  _Megan, are you still doing all right?_

Megan ignored Karmi's look of concern, wanting to concentrate entirely on getting herself free. Karmi understood, and after spending a few seconds watching Karmi's progress, she tried to follow her lead and struggle the same way that Megan was.

_I bet her dad's tried to teach her ways to get out of these kinds of situations,_ thought Karmi.  _Even after I got kidnapped by Momakase, I never took the time to train myself to escape from being tied up... I thought if I learned enough science, I could keep it from happening again. Clearly, I was wrong... Megan, I believe in you! I'll follow your lead!_

Megan noticed that Karmi was watching her, and blushed slightly, silently flattered that she was trying to learn something from her. She kept up her struggles, and could feel her ropes shifting slightly... maybe they were starting to come loose! Megan emitted a hopeful squeal and kept at it, shifting her wrists back and forth, continuing to work on the little slack she'd been able to give herself.

_Come on... I just need more time... Hiro, keep her busy!_

“You think you've gotten the best of me?” stammered Trina, falling to one knee under the intense electrical bursts.

“I think you're a robot, and robots don't like electromagnetism very much... so yeah, I do,” said Hiro. He then pressed another button, reprogramming the magnets to emit binding cables instead of electricity. “Now to wrap things up.”

The magnets repositioned themselves, and the form of energy they emitted shifted into strong energy cables that began to wrap around Trina's arms... the shift requiring a slight weakening in the electricity they were emitting. The weakening only lasted a second... and that second was all that Trina needed. As the cables moved to bind her, she focused her strength into a powerful sonic burst that blasted away both the magnets and Hiro. As Hiro cried out and flew back, Trina flew forward, grabbing him by the collar and slamming him into a nearby pillar. Hiro screamed.

_HIRO!_ Karmi and Megan's muffled voices echoed through the warehouse. Megan's struggles intensified, while Karmi's did too. The two girls were now both terrified, and Hiro's pained grunts and screams as Trina slammed him against the pillar again didn't help matters.  _STOP HURTING HIM!_

Hiro thought that he had heard Karmi shout his name, though the tape over her mouth muffled it just enough to give him doubt... not that he had time to think about that as Trina slammed him against the pillar a third time. Hiro felt his helmet crack, and his vision went blurry. If Baymax were here, the robot probably would've diagnosed him with a mild concussion... and as Trina finally released him, letting him slide weakly against the pillar, he thought for a moment that he was going to be sick.

“Well, look at you... not so tough now, are you?”

“Trina... you're a coward...” groaned Hiro, trying to pick himself up from the ground, only for her foot to stomp on his chest. “Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

“It's called being _smart_ , a lot smarter than you,” she said, pushing her foot into him even harder. Hiro cried out again, as alarms and warning indicators lit up his helmet, showing that the integrity of his armor had started to fail, and that his vital signs were destabilizing.

_No, I won't let her do this!_ thought Megan, focusing all of her energy on getting free of the ropes. She'd worked a little more slack into her bonds, but there wasn't nearly enough time for her to get free, and she could only watch as Trina continued to taunt and torture Hiro, just as she'd promised to do.  _HIRO, I WON'T LET HER HURT YOU!_

Karmi cried out in her own struggles, not having made any progress on getting her own wrists free. For all her bravery and intelligence, she was trapped, more helpless even than Megan, and she too was being forced to watch as Trina slowly stomped the life out of the boy she loved. She screamed, and for the first time since the beginning of her ordeal, she sobbed as well, a single tear coming down the side of his face.

_She's going to kill Hiro. I'll never get to tell him how I feel... about him, about Big Hero 6, about everything! If only I hadn't been so jealous of him when we'd met, if only I hadn't been so immature..._

Karmi had spent so much time working on herself since leaving SFIT, learning how to work with others, to be more unselfish, more giving with her time. She had always been a kind and empathetic person, but the pressures of academia and the praise she'd been showered with since childhood had buried that kindness under a veneer of pride. Now, just when she was on the cusp of adulthood, becoming the person that she'd always wanted to be, someone who could live up to the superhero alter ego she'd fantasized for herself, she was going to lose everything: the boy she loved, her new friend, her own life!

_If only I could help him... and Megan. I'd give anything to save them, at least._

She loved Hiro, and desperately wanted to be his girlfriend, but more than anything, she wanted him to be happy, and didn't care if it meant seeing him happy with Megan. She could be friends with them both, and at that moment, she'd have thrown her own life away to save either one of them.

And when she looked behind her back at the girl desperately struggling in the chair behind her, face soaked with sweat and tears, she could see someone who thought exactly the same way.

“So, tell me... if you could only save one of them, who would you pick?” asked Trina suddenly, lifting Hiro back up to his feet. “Would you save Karmi, the genius girl who wrote that dumb little cartoon about you, or would you save Megan, the brave little snoop who tried to turn you and your team in to her dad?”

“That's not... gonna work, Trina...” grunted Hiro, as a small trickle of blood began to fall from one side of his mouth. “Besides... I know no matter who I picked, you'd kill them both anyway. You're planning to kill all three of us... that's why I have to stop you.”

Hiro suddenly lifted up his glove and pointed it at Trina's chest, starting to form a sonic blast... only for Trina to grab him by the wrist and twist it. Hiro let out a loud cry of pain, feeling his wrist instantly sprained by Trina's strength, and nullifying his desperate attempt to save himself.

“I guess you're not completely stupid,” said Trina. “Too bad it won't save you.”

As Megan struggled and watched, crying out helplessly, Karmi remembered that even though she couldn't use her vines, she had more than one trick that the microchip embedded in her hand could perform. She could also form a powerful acid spray... but at the angle her hands were secured, she wasn't able to spray it on her own wrist bonds... or on Megan's, without risking melting the skin around her vein and causing catastrophic blood poisoning. She wasn't confident enough in her aim to try, and if she missed, she'd likely be condemning her friend to an even worse death than she was already facing.

She did have one thing she could do... she could coat her own hands in acid and then place them on Megan's ropes, which would be able to burn through her bonds and free her... and at the same time, would severely burn her own hands.

_It's going to hurt, but I can't worry about that. Hiro and Megan both need my help... and this is the only way I can help them._

Karmi flicked her wrist and began to emit the acid, which sprayed all over both of her hands. Immediately, she felt a strong burning sensation across her palms, and cried out into her gag, diverting Megan's attention briefly away from Hiro's own struggles and toward Karmi's.

_Karmi!_ Megan shouted, seeing the pained look on her face.  _What are you doing?_

Karmi squinted her eyes tightly shut, clenching both of her fists and feeling the intense pain as her skin blistered wherever the acid touched. She knew there was a good chance that the burns would eventually heal, but she didn't care how badly hurt she was... her friends needed her. Once she felt that she had sprayed out enough acid onto her hands, she gave Megan a determined, if pained look.

_This,_ muffled Karmi, placing her hands around Megan's wrist bonds and rubbing as much acid into them as she could. The ropes began to burn away, and Megan could feel them weakening. She tugged at them a few times, and the ropes snapped quickly.

_But how...?_ Megan looked down at Karmi's palms and saw what she'd done... her hands were bright red, and there were lots of blistered spots all over them. Megan herself hadn't been completely untouched, some of the acid dripped onto her own hands as well, causing slight burns but nothing nearly as severe as what Karmi had done to herself.  _Karmi, you're hurt!_

_I'm fine! Get yourself free, hurry!_

With her wrists free, Megan still had to contend with the ropes around her chest and upper arms, but she'd built up enough slack from her earlier struggles to tear her arms free from their bonds, the ropes slipping off of them as she squirmed out. Her entire body was trembling as she worked, she could still hear Hiro's pained grunts as Trina continued to attack him, and knew that every second she spent on freeing herself was a second that Trina could use to hurt Hiro. She quickly undid the ropes around her legs, and finally pulled the tape from her mouth before immediately walking around to free Karmi. As she came over, Karmi shook her head rapidly, gesturing wildly back toward Hiro and Trina, and imploring Megan to save him before saving her.

_No, Megan, don't worry about me, go help Hiro or go get help!_

“No way, I'm not leaving you tied up like this,” said Megan, reaching down to pull the tape from Karmi's mouth. “Besides... there's no way I can save Hiro alone.”

Megan gently removed the tape from Karmi's lips, allowing the girl to breathe a sigh of relief as she worked on Karmi's other bonds... and got a closer look at the damage she'd done to her hands with that acid.

“Karmi, you need to go to the hospital when this is over... your hands are really messed up.”

“We need to help Hiro... besides, it was the only way to get us out of this. I don't care what happens to me-”

“You should,” said Megan. “I'm not saying you should only look out for yourself, but... you and Hiro both need to stop throwing yourselves into these situations, you know? If you get hurt... imagine how the people who care about you might feel.”

Karmi bowed her head and sighed... she knew that Megan had a point, but she also couldn't stand by and let people get hurt if there was anything she could do about it. She knew Megan knew that too, and could've given her the same lecture... but there wasn't time for any of that, not when Hiro was still in trouble.

“I'm okay, don't worry... and I'll get help as soon as Hiro's safe, I promise.”

Megan smiled and nodded, and freed Karmi from the last of her bonds. The two looked over at Hiro and Trina, and knew they didn't have any time to waste.


	3. The Choices We Make

“You know, Hiro...” said Trina, holding Hiro against the pillar with one hand while clenching the other into a fist. “If you'd have said that you'd choose me, I would've actually let you live. I'd have disposed of those two girls, but you wouldn't be getting crushed right now.”

“I'll never choose between my friends, or any innocent people,” said Hiro, his voice strained as he struggled to push Trina away from him, to no avail. “I have to protect everyone... that's what heroes do.”

“You sound like a broken record,” Trina replied, rearing back her fist. “I can't wait to shut you up for good.”

Trina threw a brutal punch at Hiro, who closed his eyes and turned his head away in preparation for a lethal blow. Suddenly, Trina's arms were wrapped up by strong vines, and she turned to see Karmi up and free, pointing both hands at her as more and more vines wrapped around her robotic body, completely encasing her arms and chest.

“How did you get free?” shouted Trina, her voice lined with annoyance as she was pulled forward by a straining Karmi, who was gripping the vines tightly despite the injury to both of her hands.

“Karmi!” shouted Hiro, staggering forward to try and reason with her. “You need to go!”

“I didn't run before, and I'm not running now!” shouted Karmi, continuing to grip the vines as she extended even more of them from her hands. “You said you trusted me, right?”

“I do trust you, but I don't want you hurt!” Hiro lifted his arms to blast Trina with sonic energy from behind, only for Trina to suddenly pull Karmi forward and spin her around. “Karmi!”

Hiro barely managed to get out of the way as Karmi was spun around toward him. Then, Trina once again snapped the vines, and Karmi flew back, landing hard on the ground on her back, as the newly freed Trina slowly walked toward her.

“I guess you'll need to be killed first,” said Trina, picking up a laser pistol from the table and walking toward Karmi. Karmi groaned in pain but quickly picked herself up, hands still pointed in Trina's direction. “I see you've already taken some damage, was that me, or did you have a little lab accident?”

“You're the one who's about to have an accident...” spat Karmi, looking into Trina's eyes with all fury and no fear. “I'll make you pay for hurting Hi.... Captain Cutie.”

Trina just laughed, both at Karmi's show of bravado and at her nickname for her hated nemesis.

“Cutie? Can't say I see it, but whatever floats your boat, dweeb...”

Karmi pointed her hands at Trina and sprayed out another powerful acid burst, but the substance splashed harmlessly off of Trina's robotic endoskeleton, melting away some of her synthetic skin but doing little to actually harm her.

“That's a cute trick,” said Trina, lunging at Karmi and grabbing for her throat. “Now why don't I-”

“Eat this, you psycho bitch!” shouted Megan, jamming her taser hard into Trina. Trina cried out and began jerking furiously as Megan continued to apply the powerful shock, and this time, Trina was unable to reverse the polarity, as Megan had tased her right on one of the spots that Karmi's acid had melted away her synthetic skin. “This is for hurting Karmi and... Captain...”

Megan snickered.

“Cutie,” she said, finally managing to finish her sentence.

“Megan, be careful!” said Hiro, running toward both Karmi and Megan.

“It's okay, I got-”

Trina's fist came down hard, striking Megan in the shoulder and causing her to drop her taser and fall to the ground, crying out in pain.

“Megan!” shouted Hiro and Karmi in unison.

Trina surged forward, lunging at Megan, only for Hiro to suddenly grab her from behind. He could barely hold her for more than a second before he was grabbed and tossed off, flung across the room by the android's superior strength.

“I'll tear all three of you apart!” roared Trina, turning her attention back toward Megan. “You... you're nothing but a pathetic little brat... you'd be dead already if Big Hero 6 hadn't saved you!”

Megan stumbled back, putting her fists up in a fighting position, but mostly readying herself to be torn apart by Trina. She didn't have any powers, or gadgets, she was just a plain, ordinary girl, and without her taser, she had nothing to defend herself against Trina. Her right arm was still burning with pain from the blow Trina had given to her shoulder, but she was ready to fight back just the same... even if she knew she was about to die.

“I might be nothing but an ordinary human girl, but I'll fight you anyway,” said Megan, staring Trina down even as her entire body trembled. “I'm gonna put my foot right up your shiny metal ass!”

When Trina was only a few feet away from Megan, the girl lunged forward with as hard a punch as she could muster... and missed entirely. Trina smirked and struck right at Megan's chin, with a punch strong enough to knock her head cleanly off her body.

Except that her fist stopped just an inch from Megan's face. A single vine was wrapped around Trina's wrist, held by Karmi. Trina looked back at her.

“That's the third time you've tried this little trick, and the third time it's gonna fail,” said Trina, grabbing the vine with her other hand.

“I'm gonna fight you until I can't fight any more,” said Karmi, defiantly glaring into Trina's eyes. “Big Hero 6 would never give up, and neither will I!”

“That's the spirit,” said Trina. “Maybe I can kill both of you at the same time.”

As Trina walked toward Karmi, the vine began wrapping around her body, but she didn't care... she'd just snap it again, just as she had done twice before. Karmi kept her grip tight on the vine, but as Trina approached, she suddenly let it go, letting the other end of the vine fall harmlessly to the floor.

“So you _are_ giving up,” said Trina, flexing her arms in the vines and preparing to snap them.

“Nope,” replied Karmi with a sudden smirk. “Just teaming up.”

Before Trina could reply, she felt an incredible surge of electricity go through her entire body. She shrieked, and looked to see Megan's taser pressed up against the fallen end of the vines encasing her upper body. The vine focused the electricity all up and down Trina's chest, and combined with her robotic components, proved to be far too strong for her to endure. She tried snapping off the vines, but the jolt left her unable to flex her limbs properly, and she soon fell to her knees, twitching violently, her circuits temporarily disabled. As she started to go limp, she could see her two former captives standing over her. She tried to sputter out an angry response, but after Megan pushed her over, she went into hibernation mode, blacking out and falling harmlessly to the floor.

“Karmi? Megan?” said Hiro, walking over to the girls as they stood over Trina's fallen frame. “Are you two... all right?”

They looked at each other, and then at Hiro, trying their best to process the ordeal they'd been through. A wave of relief swept over all three of them, and Megan found herself wrapping her arms around her chest, while Karmi looked down at her injured hands and blushed, then looked back up at Hiro, who was still trying his best to affect his Captain Cutie voice.

“I will be now... thanks to you,” said Karmi gratefully.

“But I... didn't really do anything. It was all you guys... you're the ones who saved me. I owe you a huge thanks,” said Hiro, looking down at Karmi's hands, and then over at Megan, who was lowering her shirt down a bit to inspect her injured shoulder. “You both need medical attention.”

“Look who's talking, you got your butt kicked,” said Megan, more worried than taunting. “And... I'm really glad you're okay.”

The three stepped out of the warehouse together, just as the cavalry arrived... the other five members of Big Hero 6, diving into action. They landed just shy of the warehouse, and thankfully didn't trigger any of the proximity alarms that Trina had set for them.

“I waited exactly one hour before summoning the others,” said Baymax.

“Yeah, and I almost punched his face in for it,” said Gogo.

“I can't believe you'd come here without telling us!” shouted Wasabi.

“We're a team... you should always let us know when something like this happens, even if it _is_ a trap,” said Honey Lemon.

“Especially if it's a trap,” reminded Gogo.

“I know, but it's okay... we're... all okay,” said Hiro.

“I am detecting moderate injuries for all three of you,” said Baymax. “You have cracked ribs, a sprained wrist, a mild concussion, and many lacerations and contusions. Karmi, you have a severe acid burn on both hands. And Megan, you have a hairline fracture of your right shoulder.”

“Hairline? Is that bad?” asked Megan, rubbing her injured shoulder, before hearing many, many police sirens in the distance. “...and that would be my dad.”

The arrival of the police added even more chaos to an already chaotic situation. Chief Cruz arrived and comforted his daughter, though the fact that she'd be all right spared Big Hero 6 from a harsh lecture. Trina was taken into custody and put in a reinforced police wagon, while Hiro took some time to talk to his friends... but knew that there was someone else he needed to talk to even more. He could see Karmi nearby, about to call her parents on her phone, but when she saw Hiro walking over, she slid the phone into her pocket and blushed. He was still in his superhero outfit, and still didn't know that she knew who he was... and Karmi wondered if she should even let him know.

“Karmi, thank you again for your heroism in there,” said Hiro, coughing slightly as the strain of putting on his deep hero voice was starting to become too much for him. “Captain Cutie must go now, but-”

Karmi placed her hand on his visor where his mouth would be, as if to shush him. She took a deep breath and sighed, then looked him in the eye, her blush clearly apparent.

“Hiro... I know it's you.”

Hiro gasped, and was so taken aback that he nearly fell, but Karmi managed to steady him by grabbing his arm.

“How... how long have you known?”

“It's okay, I... kinda blabbed it out,” said Megan, walking over to join the two friends. “I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to and I get it if you're mad... I know I promised to keep it a secret.”

“Actually, I... probably should've told you a long time ago, Karmi,” said Hiro. “After the whole incident with Momakase, I thought about telling you... then after Professor Granville told us that she knew-”

“Granville figured it out too?!” shouted Karmi. “Now I feel _really_ dumb for not knowing, I've been through way more stuff with you guys than she has!”

“Yeah, I'm sorry... it was more to keep you safe than anything else, but after everything that's happened, I know that telling you or not telling you really wouldn't have changed that.”

“Hey, I get why you don't want everyone knowing, trust me,” said Megan. “...if you still _can_ trust me after letting your big secret slip.”

“I told you, it's okay. Megan... Karmi... you guys saved my life in there. I owe you both everything, and that's after you both got kidnapped because of me. I don't know what to say.”

Karmi and Megan looked at Hiro, then at each other, then blushed slightly and looked at the ground. Hiro looked at both of them and blushed as well, though the three friends were soon able to compose themselves enough to look at each other and try to carry on a conversation.

“Say you won't try to take on any evil robot girls alone again,” said Megan. “I mean it, come with the team or don't come at all... no matter what she threatens us with.”

“Yeah... Hiro, knowing it was you taking that beating from Trina, I... I was a lot more scared than I was when Momakase had me. I was even more scared than I was when Liv's clone made me attack you.”

“Same here,” said Megan. “Now I know how my dad feels when he hears about me getting into trouble.”

“Speaking of Liv, what was that in there, Karmi? Vines, acid, that's all biotech stuff, is that-?”

“Yep, I've been working with the real Liv Amara. Long story, but between my new coding prowess and this new microchip, I think I'm almost good enough to be Lab Lady for real!”

“That's really impressive,” said Hiro.

“Well, I told you before, you guys really inspired me... I really want to be a superhero, not just in fan fiction, but for real. I know I can help the world by curing diseases and with gene therapy, and I want to do that stuff too, but sometimes people need to be rescued by a buttkicking superhero! I know it's dangerous, but I'm not going to let anyone tell me no. I... I know you wouldn't either.”

Hiro knew from the look in Karmi's eyes and the determination in her voice that she wanted to become a superhero and that there was nothing he could say that would stop her. He couldn't help but worry about her, but he was also proud... not just of her, but of himself for inspiring her. He then looked over at Megan, and could see that she was smiling, but also looked a bit uneasy.

“Megan, are you okay?”

“Yeah, it's just... you two are really amazing, all those powers, all those brains, and what do I have? I've got a laptop and a taser. I think I overheard your friend Fred calling me Lois Lane? I looked her up, and she's not that great.”

“Megan, that's not true, you're plenty great...” said Hiro, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Actually, I've been meaning to talk to you too... I know we haven't spent a lot of time together since summer started... I've been really busy with the team, and figuring out what I'm gonna do once school starts back up, but you're still my friend, and... I'd like to spend some time with you too. I think I can even work on a suit for you if you want to help out with the team.”

“Actually, I think I'll pass on the suit,” said Megan.

“Are you sure?” asked Hiro. “I can incorporate some of the old Buddy Guardian tech into it, and you'd have lots of input on the design and weaponry.”

“It's okay... I think I prefer to do my work from the shadows,” said Megan. “It's just... I know I'm not as brave as either of you. I'm probably going to have nightmares for quite a while after what happened, and-”

“Having nightmares after a traumatic experience doesn't mean you're not brave,” said Karmi. “I had plenty after the transformation incident.”

“Yeah, and after what happened to Tadashi, I had trouble sleeping for _months_ ,” added Hiro. “Megan, you're one of the bravest people I know... actually, I think you're even braver than me. The offer's open for that suit any time you want, okay?”

Megan nodded, smiling gratefully at Hiro and Karmi.

“I'm not going to pass on the other offer,” said Megan. “We _should_ hang out... hopefully tomorrow, if dad lets me out of the house for the rest of the summer.”

“That'd be great,” said Hiro. “I don't think we need to worry about being interrupted with missions either... I don't think the others will let me do any superhero stuff until I'm all healed up.”

Hiro briefly looked over at his friends, who were chatting nearby... Gogo seemed to have heard him, because she was holding a roll of duct tape and she stretched some out from the roll when Hiro brought up the idea of going out to fight crime again, as if to say 'I will use this'.

“Guess that's settled then,” said Hiro, who then turned to Karmi. “And Karmi... guess I'll swing by your hotel room tomorrow to bring back your power fist...”

“I'd better swing by to pick it up right after we're done here... knowing my parents, they're probably already arranging a red eye flight out of here the moment I get back.”

Karmi sighed, looking into Hiro's eyes and placing a hand on his shoulder.

“I'll video chat you every day from now on, no matter what,” said Karmi. “There's so much I want to talk to you about, and knowing that I almost did get a chance to do it...”

“It's okay,” said Hiro. “There's... a lot I need to say to you too.”

“Guess that's my cue to leave,” said Megan, putting her hands in her pockets and turning back toward the cluster of police cars where her dad was probably waiting for her. “I know you guys probably want to catch up...”

“Actually...” said Karmi, turning to Hiro. “I'd like to talk to Megan alone for a bit, but I'll meet you back at the Lucky Cat, okay?”

“Sounds good to me,” said Hiro, smiling as he looked at both Karmi and Megan. He blushed again, and the two of them giggled, then looked at each other, then back at Hiro... and both of them leaned in to kiss him on the cheek. “....!!! O....kay, that was... that was nice, I'm glad you're both okay! I'll... see you later tonight Karmi, and uh... you, Megan, I'll... talk... see... you tomorrow morning!”

Hiro then stumbled away from both girls, barely able to walk straight as he thought about what had just happened with both of them. The two girls looked at each other again, and once Hiro was out of earshot, they started to speak, finally able to truly process everything that had happened between them that night.

“So... he likes both of us,” said Megan.

“And we both clearly like him,” replied Karmi.

“You know this isn't a sustainable thing, right?” said Megan. “We can't let Hiro start dating both of us behind each other's back. ...but at the same time, no matter what happens, Karmi, I... really like you.”

“Same here,” Karmi replied with a nod. “The way you struggled to get free, the way you kept coming at Trina even though you knew you couldn't beat her with your strength...”

“And the way you were willing to injure yourself like that to get me out of my ropes? And then when I went to free you, you tried to convince me to help Hiro?”

“No matter what happens, Megan, I want to be your friend. Even if Hiro picks you.”

“I'd be surprised if he did pick me, I think he's gonna pick you... maybe he won't pick either one of us, you know?”

“You know what? We're not going to let Hiro Hamada define our friendship,” said Karmi. “I'm... really glad to have met you.”

“Yeah... I'm glad you showed up for that interview, I'd love to do another sometime. Even if it's about _Big Chibi 6_ , which... I guess I have to start watching now.”

“It's okay, I know it's not for everyone,” said Karmi. “You probably don't read fan fiction either, right?”

“Not a single word. And I barely read comics, which is why I had to look up that Lois Lane reference...”

“Actually... there's something I wanted to say about that. Lois Lane is actually really, really brave, and you really are a lot like her, in all the good ways,” said Karmi.

“You read comics?” asked Megan curiously.

“I... I dabble in them... a little bit!” said Karmi, starting to get flustered.

“So what's so special about Lois Lane?”

“She's always putting herself in danger, always putting herself in the exact same situations as Superman. But Superman has incredible, godlike superpowers, and Lois is just a human. People say she's nothing but a weak damsel in distress because she's always getting captured and put in danger all the time, but you know... no matter how many times she's put in danger, no matter what happens to her, every single time she goes right back and puts herself in those same situations again. She's not stupid... she's one of the most brilliant writers in her world, she's won a ton of journalism awards and everything else, she knows _exactly_ what she's getting into, but she still does it, because the people need to know about what she's investigating. She's not weak, or stupid, or average at all. She's even braver than Superman.”

“Wow, Karmi, did you... always think that way about her?”

“Actually, I'd never thought too much about her until I met you, and saw how brave you were back there. Then you told me what Fred said about you and... well, he's right. ...maybe not the way he intended to be right, but you really are a brave hero, even without any superpowers.”

Megan was so taken aback that she didn't know what to say... she wanted to hug Karmi, but Karmi hugged her first, hugged her tightly and hugged her for a long time. Megan returned the hug, even as her shoulder began to ache... but the longer she spent hugging Karmi, the less pain she felt, and by the time they separated from the hug, she didn't feel any pain at all.

“So... what are you gonna do next?” asked Megan.

“Well, go back home with my parents, work on my tech, work on _Big Chibi 6_... try to convince my parents to let me come back to SFIT next year. I'm sixteen, so in a couple years I'll be able to come back on my own no matter what they say. Hopefully it won't take that long to get them to realize that I'm not some weak, scared little girl anymore.”

“Hey, if they need convincing, I can put in a good word,” said Megan. “Might be able to get my dad to help out, they might listen to the chief of police.”

“Thanks,” said Karmi, appreciative of Megan's offer. “I probably won't be coming back to San Fransokyo for a while... so I need you to promise me you'll do something.”

“What's that?”

“Take care of Hiro,” said Karmi, placing her hand on Megan's non-injured shoulder. “Look after all of them for me. Gogo, Wasabi, Honey Lemon, Fred, Baymax... everyone.”

“I will,” replied Megan. “And you take care of yourself, remember what I told you.”

Karmi nodded, though she didn't have to say anything for Megan to be assured that her new friend would be just fine.

“Come back soon,” Megan added. “We'll let Hiro figure things out on his own, and if he tells me he wants to be with you, you'll be the first one to know.”

At the start of the evening, Karmi and Megan had never even met each other. Now, through their ordeal and their shared affection for Hiro, they'd grown closer than they'd ever thought possible, close enough to fight and die for each other, the same as any of the members of Big Hero 6 would. They didn't know when or who Hiro would choose, and though they did _care_ , they didn't care about that more than they cared about each other. In figuring out what it was that Hiro saw in the other one, they'd also figured out what they liked about each other, and even if Hiro decided he didn't want to be with either one of them, they'd still have each other as friends, maybe even best friends... and in the meantime, they'd miss each other dearly.

“Thanks for everything, Megan. I know you'll keep Hiro safe.”

“And I know you'll be able to take down anyone who messes with you.”

Karmi turned to leave, and so did Megan... but then Megan stopped and turned back toward Karmi, reaching up and placing a hand on her cheek. When Karmi turned, Megan leaned up and gave her a very quick kiss on the lips. It lasted for only a second, but both Karmi and Megan were somewhat surprised by the sudden display of affection, and when they parted, both girls were blushing.

“Sorry,” said Megan, looking slightly away. “I... I know I probably just stole your first kiss, I just... after everything that happened, I just really...”

“It's okay,” Karmi replied, smiling as she turned back toward Megan. “I already told you, I think you're pretty awesome too.”

The two girls finally parted from each other, and Megan walked back over to the police cars, where her dad was waiting, while Karmi walked over to Big Hero 6 so they could go back to the Lucky Cat together to pick up Karmi's power arm. They hadn't seen Megan's 'goodbye' to Karmi, but they were all excited to talk with her, especially now that they could be open about who they were. Meanwhile, Megan got another tight hug from her dad, and was still smiling as she sat in her dad's police car, ready for a quick trip to the hospital to treat her injured shoulder.

She still cared deeply for Hiro, and was looking forward to seeing him more... but she was also looking forward to seeing Karmi again, even if she hadn't quite sorted out exactly what her feelings toward her were.

_I'm really glad I met you tonight, Karmi._

O-O-O

A week later, Megan was over at Fred's mansion, hanging out with the team... including Hiro. She had indeed started spending more time with them, and had helped to make sure Hiro stayed out of trouble... by helping Gogo tape him to a chair the previous day when he'd insisted that he was good enough to go out and help. Fortunately, she had an entire season of _The Boys_ to binge, and with Hiro's mouth taped shut, he couldn't blurt out any spoilers.

Today, the group had gathered to watch a new episode of _Big Chibi 6_ , and there was a brand new character to introduce... ace reporter Marla Cruz!

“I gotta say, Karmi does a pretty good Megan voice,” said Gogo, taking a sip from a glass of tea. “Oh wait, she's Marla, right?”

“Awww, really, my character gets captured in the first minute?” groaned Megan, letting out a sigh.

“She's really screaming up a storm with that gag on,” said Hiro with a laugh.

“Not as much as you did during yesterday's marathon,” replied Megan, leaning in and smirking.

“That's because I had to pee!” shouted Hiro.

“Both of you, shush,” said Gogo, placing a hand on both of their mouths as the show continued.

Sure enough, Big Chibi 6 and Lab Lady showed up to save the day from the evil chibi android Trina, but just when they had her beat, her chibi siblings, led by Noodle Burger Boy, arrived, and Big Chibi 6 and Lab Lady all found themselves getting beaten down!

“Wow, usually everybody just jobs to Lab Lady, I'm surprised she's writing herself so weak in this one,” said Fred.

But just when things looked hopeless for Big Chibi 6, Marla managed to work off her gag, and began sowing discord between Chibi Trina and her siblings, managing to convince her that Noodle Burger Boy liked the new animatronic sisters he'd recently recruited more than her! Chibi Trina then turned on Noodle Burger Boy and the others, beating all of them to a pulp, only to be beaten herself when Marla managed to wiggle out of the chair she was tied to and knocked out the android from behind!

“All right, yay me!” shouted Megan, clapping her hands and drawing a look of surprise from the others. “...what? I like seeing strong women in cartoons, that's all.”

The credits then began to roll, and the team started talking about the episode, while Megan just smiled and thought about everything that had happened over the past week.

_I'm closer with Hiro than ever... but I know Karmi's thinking about him too. I'll enjoy it while it lasts... and if I'm lucky, maybe he'll really be the one._

Megan leaned back and closed her eyes.

_Or maybe she'll be._

When she looked at the screen again, she was just in time to see a message at the end of the credits.

_Special thanks to Megan Cruz, the bravest hero in San Fransokyo. Thank you for everything. <3_

“Hey Megan, you're famous!” shouted Fred excitedly. “Could you autograph some stuff for me, so I can have some exclusive _Big Chibi 6_ swag to rub in Richardson's face?”

“She's not wrong, you know,” said Hiro, smiling and leaning into Megan's side. Megan smiled and leaned back against him, taking his hand in hers and letting Hiro hold her close. “You're as brave as any of us, maybe even braver... and I'm really glad we're friends.”

“Thanks, Hiro... you're a real inspiration,” said Megan, smiling warmly. She thought about Hiro, and she thought about Karmi, and she thought about the future... and even if she didn't know what it held for the three of them, she knew it was going to be an exciting one. _And I have a feeling our adventure's just getting started._


End file.
